<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>Once Upon a Dream by midnightninja14</title>
<style type="text/css">

body { background-color: #ffffff; }
.CI {
text-align:center;
margin-top:0px;
margin-bottom:0px;
padding:0px;
}
.center   {text-align: center;}
.cover    {text-align: center;}
.full     {width: 100%; }
.quarter  {width: 25%; }
.smcap    {font-variant: small-caps;}
.u        {text-decoration: underline;}
.bold     {font-weight: bold;}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23883232">Once Upon a Dream</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/midnightninja14/pseuds/midnightninja14'>midnightninja14</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Andromeda Six (Visual Novel)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>F/M, Fluff, Light Angst, M/M</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-04-27</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-04-27</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-02 15:09:13</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,114</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23883232</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/midnightninja14/pseuds/midnightninja14</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>You find yourself dancing with June at a ball.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Juniper Nyux/Traveler</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>6</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>54</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Once Upon a Dream</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>there are spoilers for ep 3, fair warning</p><p>inspired by the lovelies in the A6 server!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“You… must have a lot of experience with these,” June murmurs, trying to relax his shoulders as he pulls you closer, his hands gentle where they hold you. </p><p>You let out a quizzical hum, tilting your head at him as you both waltz along to the music. “With dances, you mean? Big extravagant balls and all the fancy clothing?” </p><p>He nods and you shoot him a barely there smile, shrugging a little. Something inside you tries to bring up the memory of the last time you’d danced like this, your mind flashing to the person who had whisked you away to a masquerade without a care in the world. You remember a charming smirk and startling green eyes that had sparkled with mischief, and you remember gentle reassurances that were all for you. You remember being happy, feeling <em>free</em> in that moment, the Peg’asi name not hanging over you for once. You remember <em>him</em>, and you grit your teeth against the sting of tears that accompanies him. </p><p>You shake your head a little to rid yourself of the memories, pushing down the echoes of joyful laughter in your ears, a warm phantom touch against your skin, and a low voice that had once been nothing but a source of comfort. It hurt too much; such a happy memory had been poisoned by grief and the burn of betrayal, ruined irreparably. You refuse to dwell on it now, forcing your attention on the present, and on the man now holding you. </p><p>Blinking back tears, you let out a little sigh to calm yourself. Meeting June’s eyes again, you say, “...Not as much as you’d think, actually.” </p><p>“No?” June arches a brow, his inquisitive gaze so focused on you it makes your heart flutter in your chest. </p><p>A soft, bitter chuckle falls from your lips as you lean in closer, hugging him as you both slowly sway in time with the slow beat. Your whisper is meant for his ears alone. “I wasn’t really allowed to attend most of the dances. The younger children were never meant to be seen or heard, after all.”</p><p>“Ah…” There’s something conflicted in his eyes now when you pull back, a frown on his face. Your chest aches at the sight, and unwittingly your mind wanders to what he had said to you after you had revealed who you really were to him and the rest of the crew. You don’t think you’d ever be able to forget his description of a horrific life your father had played a part in. The spite towards the Peg’asi that was fuelled by despair for people he had loved and lost. </p><p>It isn’t fair, but there’s nothing either of you could do now. You both had apologized to each other and talked about it, but it was understandably a sore spot nonetheless. He knows it wasn’t your fault, and that there was nothing you could have done, but it still hurt terribly. For him, who had suffered unimaginable horrors and lost all of those dear to him due to your father’s own greed for power. For you, who had to live as the last Peg’asi, and recognize just how much your father had hurt people. </p><p>Silence falls between you both as you continue your dance, and you try not to let your expression showcase your apprehension, try to steer your thoughts away from the direction they threaten to wander, lest you overthink yourself into a morose state. </p><p>June smoothly guides you into a twirl, and when your eyes meet his again, they’re warm, and he’s smiling at you. You can’t help but smile back, something in you feeling light at the very sight of that kind look directed your way. There is something about that smile and those bright eyes that never fails to soothe you, that makes you feel like everything will turn out okay.</p><p>You think that the younger version of you would’ve cried if someone had looked at you so fondly. You had nothing but Nerissa until--until <em>him</em> but he had <em>betrayed you</em> <em>and now your family was dead and you were alone</em>--</p><p>...No, but you aren’t alone anymore, are you? You have the Andromeda 6 crew now, and you have June, who is still looking at you like you are the most important person in the world.</p><p>“Well,” June says, a little grin on his face. “I never would’ve been able to tell you didn’t dance often, with the way you so easily move.”</p><p>You smirk, maybe feeling a little bolder thanks to the drink you had earlier. “Oh? Do you think about how I move a lot?” </p><p>You bite back your chuckles at the way his face flushes, his lovely eyes wide as they stare at you. He seems to fumble for how to reply, clearly caught off-guard by your question. “I-I… I didn’t mean--oh!”</p><p>It’s your turn to start in surprise as June suddenly tips backwards, tripping over something and nearly bringing you down with him. It’s only thanks to your quick reflexes that you manage to catch him, your arms around his waist as his arms scramble for purchase before finally settling around your neck. Your eyes match his in their wide-eyed state, and it takes you a second to fully register the fact that you’ve unintentionally <em>dipped </em>June during your dance. </p><p>And you can’t help but laugh, the astonishment on his face pulling easy laughter from you that hasn’t happened in a while, your eyes falling shut from the intensity of your fit of giggles. June, on the other hand, is still staring at you. But it’s for a different reason now, though you don’t catch it. </p><p>You don’t catch the way his lips part around a softly exhaled, “<em>Oh</em>…”, nor the way his eyes have softened with something impossibly fond, bordering on something <em> more</em>. You only hear his own soft chuckles, your eyes fluttering back open to see the sheepish smile on his face, his eyes dancing with a mixture of embarrassment and mirth. </p><p>“Nice catch,” he grins, and you mirror his grin, pulling him back upright. </p><p>“You are,” you say, and he huffs out another laugh, his arms loosening from around your neck, and one of his hands moving to gently cup your cheek. So softly, as though you are something precious, a treasure. </p><p>“I feel like that should be my line,” he murmurs before he pulls his hand back and takes a step back out of your arms. He holds his hand out to you, his sweet smile making your heart race. “Shall we dance again?”</p><p>You smile back, and take his hand, letting him pull you into another dance.</p>
  </div></div>
</body>
</html>